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Super Bowl LI Rates a Near Record with Avg. 113.7M Viewers

A win for the New England Patriots, the franchise's fifth with quarterback Tom Brady, the game climbed to tie the second-most-watched Super Bowl ever for an average 113.7 million viewers. (Earlier on Monday, Nielsen's metered markets had the game earning a 48.8 overnight rating among households, steady with 2016.)

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It's not only near a record for the Super Bowl, it's the all-time most-watched telecast in Fox history. That's still a bit off from 2015, the Patriots' most recent win prior to Sunday, which stands as the all-time most-watched game with a grand total of 114.5 million viewers.

Ending on a high note was much-needed by the NFL. The start of 2016 brought ratings drops for the league, particularly its primetime franchises, prompting months of harsh headlines and questions about whether it had expanded to too many nights of the week. But after the presidential election, audiences perked back up and the post-season was stronger than last year's.